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THE TRUTH ABOUT: 2 | History Defined

Banning prayer rituals in school? Just get religion out of education completely

Many who praise a headteacher for preventing Muslim prayers are oddly sanguine about the number of faith schools in Britain, says Guardian columnist Polly Toynbee

The Guardian - UK

OPINION - Katharine Birbalsingh is right and the High Court now agrees: a school is not a church

Where education is concerned, everything is about leadership. My family and I live in Tyburnia, just off Edgware Road. Twenty-two years ago we (well, my wife) started looking for a primary school for our two daughters. My wife soon found out about a Church of England state primary, Hampden Gurney,…

Evening Standard

OPINION - The Standard View: Education should be a force for unity, not division

The modern world enjoys little more than dividing us and few feel that pull more strongly than young people. But education can be anathema to all that, a place where children of all backgrounds, abilities and interests can come together for the highest of purposes: learning.

Evening Standard

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Britain's 'strictest headteacher' on prayer ban court fight: 'You can't divide children by race and religion'

Katharine Birbalsingh says she's 'nervous but hopeful' about outcome of legal challenge to school’s ban on prayer rituals

Evening Standard

Headteacher of school behind prayer ban says legal case ‘taking a massive toll’

Ms Birbalsingh told The Sunday Times the school will ‘definitely appeal if we lose’

Evening Standard

This ban on Muslims praying in school is a dystopian, sinister vision of Britishness

The decision by ‘Britain’s strictest head’ reflects a wider culture with a myopic view of what multiculturalism should look like, says teacher Nadeine Asbali

The Guardian - UK

Katharine Birbalsingh defends ban on school prayers in high court

Headteacher of London school Michaela says policy is vital to ensure ‘children of all races and religions can thrive’

The Guardian - UK

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School prayer ban restored order says 'Britain's strictest headteacher'

School has been subjected to violence, intimidation and racial harassment, says Katharine Birbalsingh.

Evening Standard

Top London school taken to high court over prayer ban

Michaela community school, run by ‘Britain’s toughest headteacher’, Katharine Birbalsingh, introduced ban last March

The Guardian - UK

Christmas TV ads underscore how generosity, compassion and empathy still matter to people

Christmas ad campaigns have become headline-worthy moments in the British national calendar, hailed by pundits and awaited by an eager public. The fact that they are now teased, like big-screen cinema releases, is proof enough that, in calendar terms, the major-retailer Christmas ad is a seasonal event in itself.

The Conversation

James May and James O’Brien mock ‘Britain’s strictest headteacher’ over complaint about M&S Christmas advert

Katharine Birbalsingh accuses retailer of putting ‘two fingers up’ to traditional Christmas values with its campaign starring Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Hannah Waddingham and ‘Queer Eye’ presenter Tan France

The Independent UK

‘Britain’s strictest headteacher’ calls M&S Christmas advert starring Hannah Waddingham ‘abhorrent’

Katharine Birbalsingh was mocked by public figures including James May and James O’Brien for her letter condemning the campaign

The Independent UK

James May and James O’Brien mock ‘Britain’s strictest headteacher’ over complaint about M&S Christmas advert

The Independent UK

James May leads mockery of ‘Britain’s strictest headteacher’ over complaint about M&S Christmas advert

The Independent UK

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The Guardian - UK

M&S advert ‘puts two fingers up to spirit of Christmas’, says headteacher

Katharine Birbalsingh tells retailer its Christmas ad featuring celebrities’ seasonal peeves will stifle children’s happiness

Evening Standard

'Outraged' London headteacher writes M&S letter of complaint over Christmas advert

Katharine Birbalsingh criticised Marks & Spencer for releasing an advert that shows celebrities shunning traditional Christmas festivities

The National (Scotland)

'Shame on you!': Britain's strictest headteacher pens unhinged letter to M&S

THE woman known as Britain’s strictest headteacher has penned a bizarre letter to Marks and Spencer’s criticising the retailer for…

The Guardian - UK

Private schools wanting to opt out of GCSEs ‘unable to produce the results’

Former social mobility tsar Katharine Birbalsingh says proposals come amid fears English state sector is catching up

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The Guardian - UK

UK government did not carry out detailed surveys before it bought free schools sites

Freedom of information requests show such was haste to open new schools unsuitable buildings were purchased without checks for asbestos or concrete

The Week

Katharine Birbalsingh: Britain’s ‘strictest head teacher’ takes aim at Jess Phillips

Britain’s most high-profile head teacher has accused Labour MP Jess Phillips of “racist and bullying behaviour”.

Evening Standard

OPINION - Fate has handed Rishi Sunak a bad hand, but he must still play boldly

Rishi Sunak is reportedly unhappy as Prime Minister: I am not surprised. He is too shiny — possibly even too idealistic— to appreciate the novelistic possibilities of decline. It seems unlikely that he will be a successful Prime Minister — 13 years are stacked against him, alongside the furies of…

Evening Standard

‘Jess Phillips needs to learn on racism like Prince Harry did’, says London headteacher

‘Britain’s strictest headteacher’ renewed her attack on Jess Phillips after a string of exchanges on Twitter

The Guardian - UK

Labour could investigate any claim of Jess Phillips ‘racism’, says shadow minister

Bridget Phillipson says party has process to look into headteacher Katharine Birbalsingh’s complaint against frontbench colleague

The Independent UK

Shadow education secretary says Jess Phillips not racist amid headteacher row

The Labour MP for Birmingham Yardley has been accused of ‘racist and bullying behaviour’ by a high-profile headteacher.

The National (Scotland)

Headteacher accuses senior Labour MP of 'racism and bullying' over social media posts

LABOUR frontbencher Jess Phillips has been accused of “racist and bullying behaviour” after getting into a row on social media with high-profile…

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